Joel and Nanette Hausman have lived in Westport for 30 years. Their 3 sons — Lucas, Casey and Corey — were excellent athletes at Staples High School. All worked during that time too, flipping burgers and filling gas tanks.
In September of 2018, Corey died in a skateboarding accident at the University of Colorado. He had begun his freshman year just 15 days earlier.
Corey Hausman (center) with Lucas (left) and Casey (right): “The Brothers.”
After his death, his family created College911.net. The organization has 2 goals: reform college safety, and educate students and parents about emergency medical procedures.
The Hausmans did not know they could have taken steps that could have saved them from the tragedy. They want others to be ready, when their children move away from home.
“This initiative will lead to more informed student decisions, and help families be better prepared as medical emergencies arise,” they says.
They believe that transparency will enable public health agencies to use evidence-based data to support accident prevention recommendations.
In addition, colleges will be incentivized to increase investment in infrastructure and safety programs, and establish emergency protocols to include access to the best possible student emergency medical care.
In the legislative realm, College911 has launched a petition to:
- Require colleges to publicly report all serious accidents (911 calls) and student deaths on or near campuses (while protecting student and family privacy)
- Adopt protocols to ensure students have access to the best possible emergency care (Trauma Level 1), and
- Require college websites to post the college-associated and other relevant health facilities (name, website/link) that provide emergency medical services to students in response to 911 calls, and (b) if this facility is not a Trauma-1, post the location of nearest Trauma-1 facility.
A proposed bill is moving through the Connecticut Legislature. It has bipartisan support, including from area lawmakers.
In addition, College911 created a Medical Emergency Checklist. It includes information for students on what they need to know once they turn 18 about their medical care (such as what information to always carry, and how to set up a smartphone health app), and for parents on what to consider before getting a call that their son or daughter needs emergency care.
Click here for the checklist. Click here for more information. To learn more or to help, email info@College911.net.